It’s alive.
After 23 minutes of stagnant offense and abysmal defense, the Lakers ended the second quarter on an 11-2 run to trim a 17-point deficit to six and trail, 48-42, at halftime.
The Spurs took their biggest lead at 33-16 on a 3-pointer by Brent Barry at 10:15. The Lakers had gone 7 for 27 for the game at that point.
Kobe Bryant started the run with a pretty spin move and finish on Bruce Bowen, and Lamar Odom completed a coast-to-coast drive and subsequent three-point play to make it 46-40.
Bryant scored inside to finish with 13 points on 6-for-11 shooting but fellow stars Odom and Pau Gasol have a combined 11 points on 5-for-15 shooting.
Michael Finley leads San Antonio with 10 points. Tim Duncan has nine points, 11 rebounds and a team-high five assists.
Kurt Thomas, who had not played more than 9:01 in each of the first four games, has a series-high six points in 11:57.
–Curtis Zupke, The Orange County Register
